Déjà vu all over again

This is our first update of 2026, and in fairness it is similar to our first update of last year. The title of our newsletter in January 2025 was “2024 Sucked”. We could have called this article “2025 also sucked” but time to move on. Last year we did feel strongly that everything was on the way up but perhaps didn’t play out that way. It feels a bit the same this year (although more positive). As Yogi Berra (famous baseball player and coach) said “it’s Déjà vu all over again”.

We have just crunched the numbers from close to 700 sales leaders and businesspeople across NZ and Australia who contributed to our latest Mood of the Sales Leader survey. The full report drops at the end of January, so I can’t let the cat out of the bag about everything just yet.

But I can tell you this: 2025 also sucked.

Actually, for many of you, it sucked in a way that made 2024 seem like a warm summer’s day with a gentle breeze. We are still banned from using buzzwords like “green shoots” or “pivoting” at the Indicator office, but there is definitely optimism coming through across Australasia and lots of economic indicators point to this.

The most interesting thing about the 2025 data? The outliers. Even in a year that felt like an uphill battle, some companies didn't just survive; they absolutely smashed it. These teams were aggressive they doubled down on new markets, obsessed over their sales and marketing technology, and invested in their people when everyone else was cutting budgets.

The common denominator for 2026? Mindset. If you want a different result this year, you have to be the one responsive to the change and put in the work.

The great news is that hopefully most of us are refreshed and ready to go after a couple of weeks of holiday and hopefully some good sunshine.

Those of us in revenue creation have a big job over the next 12 months. We have a huge responsibility to help get the economy moving forward, sometimes we forget that.

To kick off the year, here’s a fresh set of quotes

• "Comfort is the enemy of progress." – T. Barnum
• "If you are going through hell, keep going." – Winston Churchill

• "The secret of change is to focus all of your energy, not on fighting the old, but on building the new." – Socrates
• "Action is the foundational key to all success." – Pablo Picasso
• "Don’t count the days, make the days count." – Muhammad Ali
• "Growth and comfort do not coexist." – Ginni Rometty

If you haven’t already booked in to join us for the Mood event on January 29^th best you do!

Happy New Year, everyone!